Copyright in the Classroom

As I learned and dug deeper into the topic of copyright, I discovered it is a bigger problem than what I had first thought. I remember in high school being told to cite our sources for websites or books, but rarely remember every teacher informing each of us to cite where we got our pictures. I remember including a website or book title for a picture here and there, but I was never taught about the 'fair use' or 'creative commons'. With that being said, I now realize how important it is for today's students to be taught that so when they get to be my age, they are doing things the right way and are not just learning about it when they get to college.

Throughout the lecture recordings and handouts I have learned more about the 'creative commons' and how this is something that is very important for students and teachers to know about. This allows students to use resources without the risk of copyright and essentially avoid the issues of breaking copyright law. CC in Education - Creative Commons is a great website that gives some great general knowledge and how it can be used.

The more I looked into copyright, the more I realized that when I was younger I had some of the same misconceptions that many other have. I found this great website that discusses some of the myths many people may have. 10 Big Myths about Copyright Explained goes into detail about some of the big myths people have about copyright.

Now, all of this may seem like it doesn't matter unless you are doing projects, however, no matter what kind of information is used, whether it be text or images, more than likely there is some type of copyright and it is important to follow those guidelines laid out by the Creative Commons in Education to ensure things are being sited correctly. As I worked on my WebQuest, I knew it was important to site where I got my images, but until I looked more into the copyright laws and guidelines, I didn't fully understand the total importance.

It is very important for students to site their information no matter if they are creating powerpoints, posters or websites. With all types of presentation formats, the information is public and for anyone to view so it is very important for the sources to be sited. Also, if the students are creating a website, the information is being put out there for all the world to see so I feel it is more important to ensure that the information is sited in order to alleviate the concerns of copyright. Especially in this day and age, students will be doing more and more on the computer so it is very crucial they learn about this information first!

Image used with permission from Pics4Learning